Jails and Prisons

Pennsylvania continues to fail its most severely mentally ill inmates, allowing them to languish in prison while they wait for court-ordered treatment, the American Civil Liberties Union charged Tuesday in a renewed lawsuit.

Three years after the state committed to reducing wait times for mental hospital beds, prisoners in need of them continue to face monthslong delays before being transferred, the ACLU of Pennsylvania said in federal court in Harrisburg.

“Time is up,” legal director Witold Walczak said in a prepared statement. “Three and a half years of settlements and working together have failed to fix this problem.”

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